Chinese release of "Friends" - is it original?
 

I would like to purchase all seasons of Friends (1-10) and I found several of such box sets on ebay for a very decent price. They are 60 DVDs, Chinese release with subtitles that can be turned off. They are also region free.

My question is: how can I make sure that such a set is original and not pirated? Is there a way to tell when examining the box? Some of my Chinese co-workers warned me that in China there is a risk of buying a pirated copy disguised as original. The fact that it's region free makes me a little suspicious...

Does anybody own or know anything about this release? I would greatly appreciate your advice.

They're pirated bootlegs, no question.

What he said.

http://www.alternative-leather-natio...oot%20band.jpg

Stay away!!

Unless it is a Chinese film you usually can't go wrong with this formula:

Region Free + Chinese(Hong Kong, Phillipines, etc.) + Ebay + Cheap = bootleg

Yeah, it's really something that is time tested and proven.

I agree completely. :up:

Thank you all for the confirmation.

I also asked a friend who lives in China for some help. She went to a big music store where they have such a set. It is priced at 599 yen (about $75). The salesperson swore it was original. But it is a region free version... Is it at all possible that an original release in China is region free or the salesperson is not telling the truth? I would think that a set for 599 yen is legal but in China perhaps everything is possible...

Also, does anybody know why the 10th season (or a set 1-10) is not released in the US but it's available in UK, Australia and China?

No. Studios helped develop regions for a reason. Major studios do not release region free titles.

See map:
http://images-eu.amazon.com/images/G...v2-465x286.gif

As far as different regions having season 10 already is that they are distributed by different companies in the different regions.

As I believe, there are some DVDs from asia that are produced by companies as region 0, I picked up the PAL collector's edition of "Sympathy for Mr Vengeance" and it is a legit release as part of the Tartan Asia Extreme collection , however the region code is 0.

I would say just check out the sellers feedback, if they are reputable then you'll probably have no problems.